Due to the current situation with COVID-19 and Social Distancing Measures in place a number of changes have been implemented by UKAS and the Certifications Bodies on how your Surveillance or Re-Certification Audits will be conducted and here at Functio we have made a number of changes to support our clients with Remote Audits.
Remote Internal Audits
We have implemented a robust process for completing remote Internal Audits in line with our clients ISO Maintenance agreements and for any new and existing clients requiring Internal Audits to be conducted. We are using Microsoft TEAMS as the platform for completing these audits as it is the most secure of the remote meeting platforms available and allows screen sharing from any user. In advance of your Remote Internal Audit we will agree the areas of the business to be audited and provide a list of the documents that we will require to complete the audits. These documents should come across to us no later than the day before the audit. We will arrange TEAMS or conference calls with the members of your business that we will need to talk to, to complete the audits. We will discuss any Non-Conformances or Opportunities for Improvement with you and any other findings of the audits and then provide a completed audit. The process has worked very efficiently so far
ISO Audits whilst you arent able to trade or have furloughed staff
Where you are not able to trade due to the current situation or have Furloughed a large number of your team UKAS and the Certification Bodies have worked together to allow either deferment or extension of your certification for a period of up to 6 months from your expiry / surveillance date in most cases. This means your continue to be Certified during these difficult times. This will mean that there is a shorter duration between your 2020 audit and your 2021 audit as the dates next year will automatically defer back to the original date of surveillance or re-certification and therefore you may only have a 6 month period between your 2020 and 2021 audit
ISO Audits during Lockdown and Social Distancing
We have now completed a number of Remote Surveillance and Re-Certification Audits and these have all been very successful. The auditor will provide a remote audit plan in advance of the audit date and this will detail the areas they would like to review and the documents they would like to see and the people they would like to talk to. Thus far the auditors have been very flexible on these requirements based on availbaility of information that is in an office that can’t be accessed or staff being furloughed. We then prepare a directory of information against the plan where Functio and our client can upload information for the audit. We will schedule in all of the sessions using TEAMS or Conference Call facilities depending on the particular requirements and facilitate the auditor (as we would on site) for the duration of the audit.
If you wish to dicuss the above further or have any questions or concerns then please contact us to discuss
